This month we are delighted to welcome our latest guest blogger Kate Murname who balances her busy life looking after her three sons Rikki, Archie and Elliot and two dogs with running her lifestyle, fashion and homestyle business Murae.
Kate can be found on You Tube @KateMurnane and Instagram @katebowbow where she offers her dedicated fans heaps of fashion tips, home styling advice and parenting hacks.
Over the past two years, together with her husband Rick, Kate has found time to renovate their family home, creating an open plan space that’s full of light and personality yet highly practical. We asked her how she styled her beautifully serene home.
Canadian Urban Oak from our Van Gogh Rigid Core range.
“When we moved here in 2021 we wanted to create a forever home that could accommodate our growing family. We decided to combine some of the rooms at the back of the house and add a small extension to connect the original lounge and playroom with the garage on the other side creating an open plan living space right across the back of the house.
The new layout means that much of the ground floor is a single space, flowing from the hallway through into the kitchen and family room, with its wide sliding patio doors, and on into the utility room and my office. I love that we now have the open views from the front door right the way through to the garden that I’d been dreaming of. To make the most of this feeling of space, I knew it needed to be decorated as a single room.
I’d describe my style as a modern interpretation of rustic farmhouse. I love interiors that are natural and calming so I’ve used lots of warm wood with neutral off-whites and soft grey-beiges. Then I’ve introduced plenty of texture and interest with cosy throws, a large rug and open shelving for my ever changing collection of vintage art prints, rustic vases and pots with greenery.
We really wanted to get the flooring right because this forms the foundation of the whole scheme and would help the different activity areas flow seamlessly. We looked at so many options but decided on Canadian Urban Oak from the Van Gogh Rigid Core range, with its neutral light colouring and lightly brushed effect. It’s the perfect natural oak colour.
We went for the rigid core format as this meant that installation was amazingly quick, reducing the disruption to our daily routine (and my stress levels). We also loved the fact that Karndean flooring is so child and pet friendly, being hardwearing, scratch resistant and easy to keep clean.
The kitchen area has worked out so well. As much as I tried, I couldn’t quite imagine what this space would look like. We spent months back and forth with kitchen designs, measuring spaces to see if we had enough room and working out how to lay everything out to make it the most usable space for our family. I’ve always wanted a kitchen island, actually since I was a child, so I absolutely adore the end result. It’s my biggest dream come true.
I love finding the perfect pieces to incorporate into my home. There’s not much I love more than faffing around with shelves and little bits and bobs, moving them a million times until they finally feel right. All the bits I’ve collected over the years have really brought our home to life.
The result has exceeded our expectations and has totally transformed our home, giving us a highly practical family space. I am beyond happy with the way our home has turned out, I can’t believe it’s ours to be honest.”
If you love Kate’s style, why not check out our Van Gogh collection to get this look in your home. Don’t forget to grab up to three free samples or order full size ones to take a closer look.